The present disclosure relates to an injection molding machine.
An injection molding machine is taught by, for example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-205315 (JP2002-205315A). According to such an injection molding machine, a molten resin is injected into a molding cavity formed in a molding die composed of an upper or primary die part and a lower or secondary die part, so as to form a resin article. Generally, the injection molding machine is configured such that the molding die can be replaced with a replacement molding die in a die clamping unit. Therefore, the injection molding machine can be widely used in order to manufacture various types of resin articles without design changes.
However, as shown in FIG. 20, the injection molding machine 101 disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-205315 includes a first die replacement unit 104a and a second die replacement unit 104b to replace the molding die 106 with the replacement molding die 105. The first die replacement unit 104a may be used to introduce the replacement molding die 105 into the die clamping unit 102. Conversely, the second die replacement unit 104b may be used to eject the molding die 106 from the die clamping unit 102. Therefore, the injection molding machine 101 requires substantial space on both sides of the die clamping unit 102 to accommodate the first and second die replacement units 104a and 104b therein. As a result, the injection molding machine 101 may have an increased width W2. Further, the first die replacement unit 104a relies on a drive source (not shown) to force the replacement molding die 105 into the die clamping unit 102, and similarly, the second die replacement unit 104b relies on a drive source (not shown) to withdraw the molding die 106 from the die clamping unit 102. That is, the injection molding machine 101 uses two independent drive sources to operate the first and second die replacement units 104a and 104b. 
Thus, there is a need in the art for an improved injection molding machine.